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11/23/08 - A Florida Reader Says Miami Mayor Manny Diaz No Prize For Obama's Cabinet
From: Don Reynolds (e-mail him)
Re: Pat Buchanan's Column: Who Killed Detroit?
For decades, General Motors, Ford, and (German-owned) Chrysler have been moving manufacturing operations out of the country. Good, solid blue-collar jobs have been outsourced with impunity.
Everybody knows that a large percentage of the "auto manufacturing" business—once done by Americans across the country— has been outsourced to Canada and Mexico as well as other global centers.
Now plans are in progress for GM to enlarge its Brazilian operation, supplemented by Brazilian economic development money.
At least one source claims that GM plans to use bailout funds for its Brazilian expansion.
"According to the president of GM Brazil-Mercosur, Jaime Ardila, the funding will come from the package of financial aid that the manufacturer will receive from the U.S. government and will be used to 'complete the renovation of the line of products up to 2012.'"
Added Ardila:
"It wouldn't be logical to withdraw the investment from where we're growing, and our goal is to protect investments in emerging markets." ["General Motors to Invest $1 billion in Brazil Operation—Money to Come from US Rescue Program," By Russ Dahllen, Latin America Herald Tribune, November 21, 2008]
All the tear-soaked news reports on television about how awful it will be for blue-collar autoworkers if the multi-billion dollar bailout does not arrive soon are a misguided effort to dupe American taxpayers.
It does not matter whether the bailout is provided or not. Whatever U.S. workers whose jobs haven't been outsourced already will eventually be laid off.
Detroit-built cars aren't selling and inventory is accumulating in lots all over the country.
Try to shake off the nonsense that the bailout has anything to do with American blue-collar workers or their jobs. What it really is about is saving corporate America's executives and promoting globalism.
Reynolds is a city planner and economist. His previous letters about bias in journalism, the U.S. enemy identification problems, the folly of a third party and Ron Paul are here, here, here and here.